Bond of Flame
by Shade the Hero Project-X
Summary: Sora is torn by guilt and regret after the battle which took Axel's life. whether by his own feelings of responsibility or Roxas' will, Sora heads out to see if there is a way to bring a nobody who doesn't exist back to life and along the way finds himself on another huge adventure. With new worlds to lock and new friends to meet he'll need all the help he can get against new foes.
1. Prologue: Light 'em Up

**Bond of Flame**

**Prologue**

From deep within the Nobody's territory, Sora and Axel fought side by side. Dusks were coming in a never-ending wave as the two battled on. All the while they waged war, Sora couldn't help but wonder why Axel seemed to have this sudden change of heart.

...Heart...

Now there was a word that seemed out-of-place for a nobody, but then again, Axel wasn't your average nobody. Despite Sora's frustration and the confusion when it came to the nobodies. Having them constantly calling him a traitor when he had no idea what they were talking about, and the Organization never even gave him a clue, Sora could tell that Axel was different. He reminded Sora of a big brother figure, and maybe even a bit like Riku, though he was a far cry from being his best friend...or, was he?

Sora saw a dusk about to strike Axel from behind and launched himself into the air, quickly spinning around the dusk, the grunt nobody was left turning its head in confusion giving Sora the chance he needed to finish it off.

Axel smiled when he turned and saw that Sora had his back. "Just like old times ey?" He asked, thinking of Roxas.

Sora glanced at the red-headed nobody before swinging his Keyblade: Oathkeeper, at another two dusks taking them out.

The battle kept raging, but the two kept fighting, each one swimming in their own thoughts while letting their natural fighting instincts do all the work. These nobodies weren't very strong, it was only their numbers that made them a threat. As long at the two fighters kept moving they would be alright.

Axel couldn't help but fight seperate from Sora, so he could watch him from a distance; to see him in action. As Sora swung the Keyblade, taking out one dusk after another, Axel had to wonder, _was Roxas still in there somewhere?..._

A dusk took its chance and snuck up on Axel, striking him in the back. Axel turned and out of anger blasted it away from his flaming, spinning blades.

Sora saw him take the hit and went to assist when he, himself, was set upon by a dozen or so dusks. They dog-piled on top of him, pinning him down and stopping him from helping Axel.

"Get off me!" He shouted.

But it was no use, these creatures didn't have enough sense to even comprehend what the boy had even said. they seemed to take it as a threat and pushed him into the ground even more. sora was trapped!

Axel saw this and flung one of the spinning blades Sora's way.

"Duck!" Was Sora's only warning.

The Keyblade wielder stopped trying to get up and dropped down just in time as the blade flew mere inches above his head and cut down all but three of the dusks. After that it was a simple tuck and roll for Sora to free himself. He jumped up a few feet from Axel.

"Thanks!" Sora called to him, but Axel merely shook his head.

"Don't thank me yet."

They were still surrounded by a vast army of dusks.

"Ugh! they just keep coming!" Sora cried out with a moan, it was clear he was getting tired. Axel noticed this as his strength was also beginning to fade. They had to end this now, or rather, he had to end it.

Axel took one look at Sora who was standing right beside him now and closed his eyes. He had seen that Sora was fighting alongside him, but it still felt like Roxas. He finally had his best friend back, and that was all that mattered to him.

"You can't let these things slow you down anymore Sora. Kairi is waiting, she needs you and so do your other friends. You've got to stop the Organization, before they can complete their plan!"

Sora looked up at Axel, confused. "What are you talking about? What plan?"

Axel stepped forward, his spinning blades ignited into a powerful inferno that began to engulf him as well. As he looked back at Sora he was smiling. "Why, Kingdom Hearts of course. The boss has something big planned for all of those hearts and it's up to you to stop him. You, the Keylbade's chosen one are the only ones who can defeat him. Got it memorized?"

Sora blinked, lowering his Keyblade slightly, "The only 'ones'?...Wait! You mean Roxas?! He has a Kayblade to?!"

Axel laughed as he turned his head slightly to look at Sora from one side. "Hahaha! You always were selfish Roxas, you should have shared some of your smarts with Sora. It would have saved him a lot of trouble!"

Sora was about to question him further when something behind Axel caused him to gasp. Axel turned and saw a large mass of dusks charging them at once. "Listen up! Roxas, Sora, the fight is up to you now! I've done all I can, but it looks like you're on your own!"

With that, Axel began powering up even more and as the mass of nobodies charged in he unleashed a powerful flame attack, wiping them all out in a single blow.

But that last attack came at a heavy price...

Sora looked around and gasped in awe, amazed that all the nobodies were gone. His gaze rested at a figure laying on the ground.

"Axel!"

Sora ran over to him and noticed what was happening. "You...you're fading!"

Axel looked up, the smile never leaving his face. "Well, that's what happens when you put your entire being into an attack." He raised one weak, shaky hand and opened a portal. "Kairi's that way. Go, save her."

"But what about you?" Sora asked, his face full of worry.

"I'm a nobody, without a heart I'm fading away into nothing...perhaps...that's all I ever was."

"Don't say that!" Sora shouted. "Or course you were somebody once! If every heartless was a person then so was every nobody!"

Axel smiled as he became more transparent. "Stupid, just because you have a heart."

Sora started crying, but he felt as if they were someone else's tears.

Axel saw the tear fall before he faded completely.

Sora stood up only after Donald and Goofy had caught up to him. Without a word to either of them, the wielder of the Keyblade ran straight through the portal.

* * *

"Axel!"

Sora slowly sat up from his bed. a call from a seagull caused him to look out the window. He was back on Destiny Islands. It took him a minute to realise that the war with the nobodies was over. Xeanort was defeated and Kingdom Hearts had been sealed a second time.

He, Riku and Kairi were safe and Goofy, Donald and the king had returned to their own home in Disney Castle. Life had finally gotten back to normal. The heartless had all but vanished as had the nobodies. It seemed the Keyblade could finally be put to rest, at least that's what Sora would have liked to believe.

He still felt bad that Axel had given his life to protect him, it was only after Axel's death that Sora had discovered that Roxas was Sora's nobody, and it did little to put his mind at ease, or rather, his heart.

He had saved the worlds and brought peace once more, but he still felt like he had failed in some way...there was only one thing to do. Sora had to see the King.

* * *

A/N: This story just came out of no where. I was playing Kingdom Hearts 2 just to relax after a long, tiring day Christmas shopping and doing some yard work when this idea just came to me. What was going through Sora and Axel's mind as they fought side by side? The battle area, if you hadn't guessed was the path just before Sora enters "The World that Never Was" Some of the events in the battle actually happened while I was playing, obviously I wasn't dog-piled, but they did seem to go after me more than Axel.

Anyway, this was also supposed to be just a one-shot, but It seems to have some potential to make for a good longer story. We shall see how this plays out. Oh, and one last thing to clear up any confusion. This isn't a SoraxAxel fic, they share more like a brother-like relationship in this one, since Axel and Roxas were best friends. hope you enjoyed this chapter and look for the next one to come soon, probably after I update "Phoenix in the Night" and "Ponysona 3"


	2. Chapter One: Stubborn Little Run-Away

**Chapter One: **

**Stubborn Little Run-Away**

The next day Sora had everything packed and ready to go. He had no idea when he'd be back, but with everything he had been through, he figured it was best to be prepared for a long trip. He left his cottage home and headed for the small paddle boat that would ferry him to the mainland where he could hop on a train.

He thought back to the days following his return home, after sticking by Riku and finding the letter from Kairi that led them both back to Destiny Islands and their friends. A bottle had washed ashore with a message inside. It had the King's seal. Sora remembered it had been fairly long, describing the current state of the worlds following the defeat the Organization. The king had also mentioned that there was now a special train at the station on the mainland that Sora could use in case of an emergency or if he needed to see the King and his friends.

Sora decided now was as good a time as any. He had untied the line that was holding his boat to the dock when a rock landed with a heavy thud in the middle of the boat, almost landing right on top of Sora's foot.

"Agh!" Sora cried out as he tried to keep his small craft from cap-sizing.

"And just where do you think you're going?" Came a voice from the dock.

Sora inwardly groaned as he looked up to see Riku standing with his arms folded. The silver-haired teen didn't seem to pleased.

"I'm just going to the mainland." Sora answered, trying to hide how nervous he was about being found out.

Riku gave him a knowing look as he smirked. "Yeah right, with all of that stuff? Not likely. You're going on another adventure aren't you?"

Riku jumped into the boat, which sunk deeper into the water, still being weighed down by the heavy rock. "Well, if you think you're going alone you can forget it. You'll need someone to watch your back."

Sora would love nothing more than to invite Riku along, but he knew full well that his search could lead him down a dangerous path, and after the last time Riku had tangled with the darkness, Sora didn't want to risk losing his friend again.

"I'm just going to see Goofy and Donald. They mentioned something about finding a missing page to a favorite book of mine and I wanted to go and see it."

Sora instantly regretted the poor lie he had tried to tell Riku as his friend's smile only widened and he closed his eyes in a cheerful grin. "You don't say, well I think I will tag along then. I've been meaning to see how the King is doing."

With a heavy sigh Sora started paddling, but he wasn't having a little trouble. This gave him another idea. "That rock's pretty heavy. I don't think I can row us to the mainland. Darn, and all that packing for nothing. Oh well, guess we can't go."

Splash!

Riku threw the rock out of the boat with ease. "You were saying?"

Riku knew Sora was up to something, he just didn't know what, ...yet, but after everything they had been through he wasn't going to let his best friend face this new mission alone.

With a heavy sigh of defeat Sora faked a smile and began paddling out towards the mainland.

* * *

Some time later...

"Stop him!"

"Grrrrr..."

"Yeowch! He bit me!"

"Hehehehehe!"

"Come here, you little trouble maker!"

"Quick! He ran down the stairs!"

Thud! Bonk! Crash!

"Gawrsh! Are you alright, Donald?"

"Ughhh..."

* * *

After a long train ride and a quick bite to eat Sora and Riku arrived at Disney Castle.

"Man, that took forever!" Sora exclaimed with a stretch. "I wish we had our own Gummi Ship. We would have gotten here hours ago!"

Riku nodded. "It would have taken me a few minutes to get here if I still had the power of darkness."

He stopped and looked down at his hand, a serious frown painted on his face before noticing the look that Sora was giving him.

"Relax, I'm only kidding." He said waving his hand defensively in front of him.

A loud crash stopped the two in their tracks.

"Doesn't this thing ever get tired?! Goofy, stop him before he reaches the library!"

"I gotcha Donald!...Now C'mere little fella! It's about time you settled down! Whoa!"

CRASH!

Sora and Riku dashed through the garden and entered the palace through the side entrance. They skidded to a halt as they came upon the scene.

"What happened to you guys?" Riku asked as he saw Donald trying to help Goofy up. Both of them looked like they had fought an entire army...and lost!

"We were doing a favor for the King when this little monster decided to trash the place!" Donald answered for the both of them as he tried to help Goofy brush himself off.

"Who could possibly cause you more trouble than me?" Sora asked them in good humor.

Donald and Goofy suddenly looked up at the two who had addressed them and suddenly realized who they were.

"Sora!"

Both of them ran up and tackle-hugged Sora, knocking him to the ground.

Sora chuckled as he tried to sit up from the tackle. "It's good to see you guys too!" He said with a laugh. Riku only folded his arms and smiled, shaking his head.

"So, what kind of monster are we dealing with? It couldn't be a Heartless or a Nobody could it?" Riku asked.

Donald's smile instantly faded as he stood up. "I almost wish it was."

"We've been trying to catch 'im all mornin', but he's a tricky little guy." Goofy added as he helped Sora back to his feet.

"Catch who?" Sora asked before another loud crash echoed down the hallway to the left.

"Ooh, what's he gone and broken this time!?" Donald grumbled.

"Well, let's see if we can lend a hand." Sora replied, glancing over to Riku who shrugged. Sora took that as a 'whatever' and headed off towards the noise with the others following close behind.

When they got to the room where the commotion came from they found themselves in a large library full of books. However, the shelves that were once nice and neat were now bare and the books were scattered all over the place. Loose papers covered the floor, books were scattered on top of tables, hanging off of chairs, laying opened and upside down on the floor and sitting in places you wouldn't think a book would be able to fit.

"Where'd he go?" Goofy asked, looking around.

Sora stepped into the middle of the room, he turned to look under the table and behind a desk. A small clinking sound came from the ceiling light as the small furry creature peered down from his hiding place. He recognized Sora right away and when the boy had his back turned the creature made his move and jumped.

"Sora!"

"Agh!...Oof!"

Sora didn't know what hit him as he was struck from behind and tumbled forward, rolling into the book shelf, knocking over what little books remained stacked. He rubbed the back of his head, trying to ignore the bump that was already starting to rise when he felt the creature in his lap hidden under a book. Sora lifted the hard cover to reveal a furry blue creature who shook himself off like a dog would shake off water.

"Stitch!" Sora exclaimed as the little blue alien smiled at him.

"Stitch miss Sora!" He replied as he hugged the boy.

Riku could barely hide a teasing smirk as Goofy giggled. Donald however was steaming.

"Whak! Don't pretend to be all sweet and innocent now! Not after the mess you made throughout the entire castle!"

Stitch left Sora and approached Donald, his big ears drooped and his eyes grew big and sorrowful. "Stitch sorry." He whimpered.

It worked, Donald softened and patted Stitch gently on the head. "Aw, it's alright, just make sure you go somewhere far away the next time you want to break things."

"Stitch not break things! Stitch looking!"

"What were you looking for Stitch?" Asked Goofy.

The little alien jumped on the table and looked around before he finally found what he was looking for. He ran over to it and picked it up, holding it out for the others to see.

"It's a stick." Donald stated.

"No, it more!" Stitch implied.

"What's so special about it?" Riku asked, getting a little annoyed after finding out that all the commotion was over such a simple thing.

Stitch sniffed it. "It salty...but sweet too!"

Both Riku and Donald rolled their eyes while Goofy scratched his head. Sora however looked at the stick more closely. "Can I see that?" He asked.

Stitch handed it to him and Sora looked it over. _Salty...but sweet too... _

He couldn't figure out why that phrase seemed to stand out, it was as if something deep within him was screaming an answer that couldn't be heard. Sora turned the stick over and saw a word written on it. "Winner?"

Then it hit him. A flashback that didn't belong to him.

* * *

_He was sitting on the ledge of the clock tower in Twilight Town. A Sea Salt Ice Cream bar was in his hands and he was wearing a black jacket. He looked over to his right and saw Axel sitting a couple of feet away. _

_"You remember what this ice cream is called?"_

_..._

_"C'mon, I already told you once." Axel took another bite of his ice cream. "Get it memorized, man. It's called Sea Salt Ice Cream."_

_A few moments passed by as the two ate their ice cream in silence. _

_"The day I brought you to the Organization...we ate ice cream together, but I guess you wouldn't remember that. Hey, what has it been, a week since you shown up?"_

_"...I guess..."_

* * *

"Sora!"

"mmmm...huh?" Sora groaned as he slowly came to. The first thing he saw was the king standing over him. "You're majesty? Wh-what happened?" He asked, his mind feeling very foggy.

"You were out for a while Sora, the sun's already setting." The king replied.

Sora rubbed his head as he slowly sat up. It felt like he had only been out for a few minutes.

"Man, you've been acting strange all day. First you try to take off on your own, you come up with this wacky story about a missing page, which I know was a lie. I thought you would have learned something from when Pinocchio told a lie. I could see your nose growing longer than our favorite tree branch. Then you take interest in a lousy old popsicle stick and you shout out a name and black out. What's with you?" Riku asked after finishing his list while counting on his fingers.

"Wow, Riku, that was a mouthful." Sora replied flatly.

King Mickey looked back and forth between the two friends before concentrating on Sora. "What's he talking about Sora? What name?"

Sora blinked, trying to think back to just before he had that flashback. "I...don't know. I looked at the popsicle stick and I...just blacked out."

"May I see this popsicle stick?" King Mickey asked.

Sora handed it to him, surprised that he was still holding on to it. The king looked it over before sniffing it. "It smells like Sea Salt Ice Cream."

Sora nodded absent-mindedly, not really paying attention to what the king was saying as he dwelled on the flashback, trying to figure out when that event had happened. He had never just kicked back with Axel, especially not in Twilight Town wearing an Organization jacket of all things, but, if that wasn't him then who was it that Axel was talking to and why was he seeing through their eyes?

* * *

_...meanwhile..._

Kairi was standing at the edge of the dock with her arms folded and her foot tapping in annoyance.

"Now where have those two gone? They never let me tag along!" She said with a pouty face.

* * *

_**A/N: And this is what I love about random ideas. You never know when inspiration will strike! I knew getting that manga would help spark some new ideas. Though, when I got the first volume of 358/2 days I never expected for one of the events in the prologue to actually happen in the mange, almost EXACTLY as I portrayed it! I swear, I wrote that chapter first before I read the manga. And then when I read it, I was like: OoO! "Are you SERIOUS?!" **_

_**That was pretty kool, knowing that what I wrote was totally in character. So, it gave me the confidence boost I needed to feel nice and comfy writing for these characters. The Disney characters are easy for me, since I pretty much grew up with Disney movies. **_

_**Anyways, there I go rambling again, I never expected to write another chapter for this first before the other two that I mentioned in the previous AN. Oh well, such is the life of a writer. You never know when that random idea storm will strike. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. the next one will come soon. And please, don't be afraid to drop a review or a critique. I don't bite. ;)**_


	3. Chapter Two: Nobody Important

**Chapter Two:**

**Nobody Important**

Two hours later Sora was standing on the balcony of the guest room he had been given by the king. He leaned his arms against the rail and looked up at the sky. He knew that each star was a different world, a separate world that had its own rules and its own wonders. With different people dealing with different responsibilities and destinies. Sora took a moment to reflect on some of them. Simba, Mulan, Hercules, Peter Pan, Beast, he wondered how all of them were doing after the heartless and the nobodies had plagued their worlds.

How was Simba fairing with the duties of ruling his kingdom? Was Mushu staying out of trouble? How had Hercules recovered after the Coliseum's collapse? Had Beast managed to break the curse that surrounded his castle?

a knock at the door interrupted his thoughts as a small figure entered. King Mickey poked his head inside. "Sora?" He asked, unsure if the key bearer had been asleep.

"Over here Your Majesty." Sora replied from the balcony.

Mickey entered and approached his friend. "I have a feeling that you didn't just come to see how we were doing, there's something troubling you, isn't there?" He asked, looking straight out across the garden that lay below.

Sora was silent for a few short moments before answering. "Yeah, it's been bothering me for a while now. I just didn't show it in front of the others."

"You did the right thing coming here, I don't think you would have been able to hide it for much longer." Mickey told him.

"Yeah, especially not from Riku, He refused to let me come alone. He thought I was going on another quest." Sora said, looking down at the garden as well.

"Are you?" asked the King.

"That's just it, I don't know." Sora admitted. "I know we defeated the heartless and the nobodies, but It feels like I failed."

Mickey quickly turned his head to look at Sora. "That's not true! Sora..., you save the worlds twice, without ever giving it a second thought I might add. How can you say you failed? Everything would have been lost if not for you and your keyblade!"

Sora looked away from the king, unable to meet his gaze. "But, I couldn't save everyone...that name I shouted earlier, before I passed out, I think I know who it was..."

"Who?" Asked Mickey.

Sora slowly turned to meet the king's gaze. "Axel."

"Axel?" Mickey repeated. "But, Sora, he was a member of Organization XIII, he tried to defeat you more than once and don't forget that he kidnapped Kairi. Why would you feel bad about not being able to save him?"

Sora placed his hand over his chest as he answered. "Because in his last battle, he fought by my side, helping me when I had been separated from Donald and Goofy. He saved me and then...he called me Roxas, like the others did. I didn't understand what he meant then, now I do."

Mickey nodded, slowly starting to understand. "You think he was trying to help Roxas, as if he could still sense him inside of you." Sora nodded slowly. Mickey sighed, Sora really did have a pure heart.

"Sora, Roxas is gone, he vanished when you woke up from your long slumber and Axel vanished when he was defeated." The king added, with a heavy heart.

"He wasn't defeated!" Sora shouted, causing the king to take a step back. "He faded after using all of his power trying to help me get to Kairi, I know he may have done it for Roxas, but if it weren't for him, we may not have made it in time to stop Xemnas. We owe him!"

King Mickey's ear twitched before he responded. "Sora, I know you feel bad, but I don't know what we can do. There is no way to bring Axel back."

"What about his heartless?" Sora blurted out. "If we can find it shouldn't there a way to revive him then?"

"Is that possible?" Riku asked, stepping in from the hallway and knocking Donald and Goofy over at the same time who had been eavesdropping.

King Mickey looked over to the older teenager. "I don't know. I never saw anything that could help us when I searched Ansem's office in Hollow Bastion."

"A-hy'uck, don't you mean Radiant Gardens?" Goofy corrected him while raising a finger.

"Goofy, don't correct the king!" Donald told him, trying to remind Goofy not to forget that it wasn't right to correct royalty.

Mickey looked back up at Sora. "I'm sorry, I don't think there's anything we can do to help those who have been lost."

Sora's expression changed from hope to dejected. "But, there has to be a way."

"What makes you so sure?" Riku asked.

Sora held out his hand and the keyblade appeared. He stared at it as he slowly blinked before answering: "Because I was lost once."

"That was different!" Riku snapped, not happy with the memories that Sora had stirred up.

"Is it?" Sora snapped back before calming himself. "When I used that dark keyblade to give Kairi's heart back to her, I was lost in an empty void. I had forgotten everything. Names, faces, nothing registered, but then, I heard voices. They were far away, but they all kept calling me by name. After that, I saw a glimmer of light and reached out for it. The next thing I knew, I was standing there in Kairi's arms."

Everyone fell silent for a few moments until the king voiced what they all were thinking. "Sora, it's not like we don't want to help, we just don't know where to start."

"I've been thinking about that," Sora replied.

Donald smiled up at his friend. "You mean you have a clue?"

Sora gave the feathered mage a weak smile. "Call it more of a hunch. We need to head to Twilight Town."

king Mickey smiled. "I'll go back to Ansem's old office and see what I can find. I may need your help, Riku." Mickey then turned to the other three. "Donald, Goofy, I want you to go with Sora to Twilight Town and find that clue. Since Axel did help us, it's the least we can do to try and help him."

Donald and Goofy stood at attention and saluted. "Yes sir, you're majesty!" They both answered as one.

Sora looked at them and smiled. "Thanks guys."

Mickey smiled up at him. "After all you've done, it's the least we could do."

Riku looked over at Sora, "Then it's settled. We leave in the morning."

* * *

_**A/N: Boy, this chapter was a bit depressing.I also realize that it was pretty short and not much action. The next chapter will be a bit more up-beat, Promise~ ;)**_

_**I've stuck to working on this story because I've hit a writer's block with the others. My apologies to those who have been enjoying them. Trying to fix the next chapter of "Phoenix in the Night" is like trying to fit together a 5000 piece jig-saw puzzle. Just thinking about it makes me dizzy. I'll try to tackle those again sometime after New Year's. **_

_**However, that isn't stopping me from adding more to this story though. The more I go over the storyline the happier I am with the plot. I hope you will enjoy it too. :)**_


	4. Chapter Three: Red is Strongest

_**Well, I probably should have said this at the beginning, but like usual, I get so focused on writing a story that I forget the minor, official stuff. **_

_**Disclaimer! **_

_**I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters. That honor belongs to Tetsuya Nomura and the people at Square Enix and Disney. **_

* * *

**Chapter Three:**

**Red is Strongest**

The train's whistle sounded as it made its way along the tracks. Sora stretched as the train pulled up to the station. He and Goofy had chosen to take the train while Donald had stayed behind to wait for the Gummi Ship to be upgraded. Chip 'n' Dale had been busy working on it all night since the king had ordered it to be made ready.

As the departure call was made, Sora stood up and grabbed his bag as Goofy did the same. The friendly dog-like guardian had packed his bag full of healing potions and elixirs, just as he had done when they had ventured around fighting the heartless and other dark forces in the past.

Sora grinned as he heard the clanking sounds of the bottles rattling together. "I don't think we're going to need all of those, Goofy."

"Well, you never can be too prepared, A-hyuck!" Goofy replied with a cheerful smile.

Sora couldn't argue, Goofy's preparedness had saved them many times before when his and Donald's magical energy had run low. As they stepped off the train and onto the platform a voice called out his name, but it also made him freeze in place.

"Sora!"

It was Kairi! She was waving to him and Goofy from a few yards away. Sora was left looking dumb-founded, he didn't have the slightest idea where she had come from. He could have sworn he had left her on Destiny Islands. Before he had time to think any further, she was running up to him.

With a smile, Sora held his arms open, preparing to embrace her when,

BONK!

"Ow! Kairi! What was that for?" Sora asked while rubbing the top of his spiky head where she had hit him.

"Sora, you lazy bum! How dare you just leave like that without even saying goodbye! After everything that's happened I thought you would have trusted me enough to tell me where you were going or at least tell me that you were leaving!" She was pretty mad, but it was mostly just a front, secretly, she was just glad he was alright.

"I'm sorry Kairi," Sora began, his reason for not telling her was the same reason he didn't tell Riku, he should have known she would figure it out, just as Riku had, they both knew him too well. Kairi's appearance here was proof enough. "I meant to tell you, but, well..."

"It doesn't matter." Kairi told him as she took his hand in hers. "We're here now, so let's just forget about it, okay?"

Goofy merely smiled at them as he followed close behind. As they left the station the clock tower began to toll. Sora looked up at it and felt dizzy. He placed a hand against his forehead and dropped down to one knee. Kairi instantly became worried as Goofy rushed to his friend's side.

"It's happening again!" Goofy exclaimed.

"What's happening?!" Kairi asked, panic ringing as clear as a bell in her voice.

Sora tried to focus on them, but everything was beginning to spin and soon he couldn't focus at all.

* * *

_"Betcha dunno why the sunset's red."_

_..._

_"See, light's made up of a lotta colors. And out of all those colors, Red's the one that travels the farthest."_

_"Who asked you know it all?"_

_"Heh heh heh"_

_"Hahaha!" _

* * *

"Sora! Sora say something!" Kairi shouted.

Sora opened his eyes and saw her leaning over him. Goofy was there to as was Hayner, Pence and Olette.

"You feelin' alright there champ?" Hayner asked as he and Pence helped him sit up. Sora looked around, trying to focus his vision. As the fog began to lift, Sora realized that he was now sitting on a bench in Hayner's Usual Spot. Sora hadn't been here very often, but it still felt like home, sort of like the usual spot that he, Riku and Kairi would hang out at, by the group of palm trees; their most favorite spot on the island.

"I blacked out again, didn't I?" Sora asked, trying to pull himself out of old memories. He had a mission to focus on, and he couldn't achieve it by strolling down memory lane.

"What do you mean 'again'? How many times has that happened?" Came Kairi's voice, She was right at his side, it looked as if she had been holding back tears.

Sora forced a smile, for her sake. "It's nothing serious. I just don't sleep that much." He tried lying once again, hoping this fib sounded better than his last pathetic attempt.

"But, didn't you get a lot of sleep on the train ride here." Goofy asked.

_Gee, thanks Goofy..._Sora thought as he tried to stretch. "In those uncomfortable seats? Who could sleep? All I managed to do was rest my eyes a bit. Gimme a few minutes and I'll be fine."

That answer seemed to satisfy the group, though, Kairi was still giving Sora a look. It was a sad expression, one she often wore when she was scared for him. Sora noticed it and out of the blue, made a funny face at her. his efforts were rewarded with a smile and a small giggle.

"You scared me Sora, don't do that again." She asked once her giggles had subsided.

"Sorry I worried you." He replied, sincerely.

She smiled at him before giving him a stern glance. "Remember what I said back on top of the Nobody's castle?" She asked, giving him a few moments to think. "I said I was tired of waiting, so don't tell me to stay behind! From now on wherever one of us goes, the other follows."

Sora glanced down at the ground, remembering what she had said on top of the tower; the doorway to Kingdom Hearts laying before him. "I remember..."

"Then how come you left and didn't mention anything? Sora, I don't want to lose you again." She scolded him, making Sora feel more like a child getting a lecture from his mother.

"There's someone I have to try and save, and I don't know how. I came here trying to find a clue that may help...and,...I think I may have found another one." Sora added, the cogs slowly turning in his head as he figured out that these flashbacks he was getting had to be connected to it somehow, since they had both involved Axel.

"Is there anyway we can help?" Olette asked.

Sora looked over at the girl and nodded. "Sure, do you guys know anything about a guy named Axel?"

"Axel!?" Kairi repeated.

"Wait, isn't he the one who kidnapped Kairi and took her through that portal?" Pence asked.

"Yeah, but he was really sorry about that." Sora replied, recalling Axel's apology as he lay there in the realm of the nobodies, slowly fading away.

"We haven't seen him since he nabbed Kairi." Hayner flatly stated. "And if he's missing, I say good riddance." He added.

Sora stood up and looked around. "Well then, I guess we'll have to look for clues ourselves. C'mon Goofy." The keyblade wielder started for the exit.

"Right behind ya." Goofy replied. Kairi looked over at Hayner and the others before following after Sora. She may not have liked Axel for what he had done, but Sora had a way with seeing the good in people and if he thought Axel deserved a second chance, then she could at least give it a try, providing Sora was by her side.

It had been over an hour and Sora still had no idea where to start looking. They had mainly just walked around town. Sora was secretly trying to see if he'd get another flashback, but they were so random and he never knew when one would be triggered or what would cause it. As he thought back to his last one, he realized something.

Without a word to his friends he took off towards the train station. Goofy and Kairi were hot on his heels. "Sora, wait up!"

...

A short time later all three were standing on the ledge of the clock tower. Kairi was a bit nervous, until Sora helped keep her stable as she sat down. "So, mind telling us why we're up here?" She asked.

"Both visions I've had took place here, right in this spot." He finally answered, deciding now was the time to reveal what he had seen when the others thought he had simply blacked out. "I was sitting here, right in this spot, and Axel, he was sitting right there." He pointed a few feet away from him. "We were eating ice cream and he was telling me about when he brought me into the Organization."

"But Sora, you were never in the organization!" Goofy pointed out.

"I know, but, my nobody was." Sora replied.

"You mean Roxas?" Kairi asked. Sora nodded and she continued. "You know, I spoke to him once. He reminded me a lot of you. Of course, that was before I knew who he was and that he was, part of you."

Sora smirked as he looked out over the town.

_"Betcha dunno why the sunset's red..."_

A voice echoed those words in Sora's mind. "Betcha don't know why the sunset's red..." He repeated out loud. Kairi and Goofy looked at him strangely, not understanding what he meant.

* * *

Meanwhile...

In Ansem's office Riku and the king had gone through most of the reports and papers that had been left behind by Ansem the Wise. Riku flopped into the office chair and leaned the side of his chin in his hand, with his elbow on the desk. "We've been looking for hours! I'm starting to think this is a waste of time."

King Mickey however, was not one to give up so easily. "It's only a waste of time if you've learned nothing from it. We may not find a fully detailed report, but it would all be worth it if we could find even the smallest of clues."

Riku couldn't argue with that and looked through the stack of papers that was sitting on the desk. "It's not that I don't believe Sora, I just don't think there's a way to do the impossible."

Mickey stopped looking and directed his gaze up to Riku. "That's what I once thought about the heartless."

Riku lifted his head, not fully understanding what the king meant.

Mickey took that as a signal to continue. "When I first sent Goofy and Donald to look for the 'key' I didn't think that there was hope for those who had become heartless to be brought back,...but, Sora proved me wrong."

"You mean when he...?" Riku couldn't bring himself to finish, but Mickey nodded with a knowing smile. "Yep. It was his light that brought him back. If the darkness in someone's heart can summon the heartless then maybe their light can bring them back."

Riku nodded in agreement before getting up to look through a stack of books on a nearby shelf.

Leon entered through the hidden door. "Oh, it's only you guys. I thought it was that blue fuzzball again."

"You mean Stitch?" Riku asked, not taking his eyes away from his task.

Leon nodded as he looked around the room.

"What was he doing here?" King Mickey asked.

"Not sure, he was sniffing around a lot, and when Cid and I tried to ask he asked us about something sweet and salty. The two of us couldn't make any sense out of it."

Riku and the king exchanged glances, knowing what the little alien had been searching for.

Mickey looked up at Leon, a determined look was clear on his face. "Tell us everything."

* * *

The sun had nearly in Twilight Town. for thirty minutes Sora had sat up there with Kairi and Goofy, waiting for a clue. The spiky-haired teen was sure that coming here would get him one step closer to helping Axel, but he couldn't even find a slightest hint of a clue.

"Come on!" He shouted, standing up and shouting into the sky. "I need some help here! Give me a sign, anything! Just point me in the right direction!"

"What's that?" Goofy asked, pointing down below.

Sora could hardly believe his eyes. A group of nobodies were heading to the group of trees that surrounded that old house that sat just outside of the city. Sora took off running, trying to get to them before they disappeared.

* * *

_**Gee Kairi, how'd you just pop up in Twilight Town out of nowhere? She's a sneaky one, that girl. x3 hope you enjoyed this chapter. Again, not much action, but that'll change in the next chapter. As made evident by the end of this one. ;P **_

_**I need to start updating my other stories, but the ideas just aren't flowing, yanno? I'll try to have some updates for them by the end of January, but until then, I hope you enjoy this story. **_

_**I also wanted to apologize if some of the facts or quotes in here are not entirly accurate, I don't claim to be an expert of Kingdom Hearts, I'm just a really big fan. ;)**_


	5. Chapter Four: Nobodies Perfect

**Chapter Four:**

**Nobodies Perfect**

Leon was waiting for Yuffie and Cid to arrive before explaining himself to the King. While they were waiting he started going through the mess and picked up random papers and books, placing them neatly on the desk. Riku glanced at the items before shifting his gaze to the King who merely shrugged. It was only when Leon seemed satisfied with his gathered collection that Cid and Yuffie arrived.

"'Bout time you two got here." Leon greeted them.

"It's not my fault," Yuffie defended herself, "talk to this guy."

Cid had the most miserable look on his face as Yuffie tried pulling him into the room.

"I told ya! I ain't got time to be wasting cleaning up someone else's mess!" He looked in the room and noticed the King standing next to the desk before he stopped his struggling, causing Yuffie to fall on her rear.

"Your Majesty! No one told me we had an honored guest." He cast a glance over at Leon who kept his eyes closed while leaning against a wall.

"Hello! Care to help me up now that you knocked me into this mess?!" Yuffie asked, having trouble getting out of the pile of books that had fallen on top of her when she fell.

After the ninja had been freed from her hardcover prison Leon began speaking. "The king wanted to know what happened when Stitch was here." He pointed to the items he had placed on the desk. "Those were all the items he had looked through, he sniffed every one of them, all the while muttering three words."

"What did he say?" Mickey asked while Riku picked up one of the books and began looking through it.

Leon glared over to Cid who wiped his nose with a finger. "Every other book he mumbled 'sweet', then for others he mumbled 'salty', and the rest he kept sayin' stuff like, charcoal, burn and ash. I don't get it yer Majesty, what's Stitch got to do with royal business?"

As Riku kept himself busy with the notes, Mickey was left to tell their side of the story. He told them of Stitch's rampage through Disney Castle and Donald and Goofy's failed efforts to corral the small alien.

"...And that's when Sora and Riku arrived to help us catch him." Mickey finished.

"I'd say it was Stitch who caught Sora." Riku corrected the king with a smirk.

Mickey pulled out the popsicle stick that Sora had given him and showed it to the group. "This is what Stitch was looking for in my library. There were books and papers scattered all over the place as well, but he seemed to be focused on finding this."

Yuffie picked it up first and examined it before offering it to Leon who glared at it leaving her to show Cid.

"Lemme see that." He said, taking it and looking at it closely. Upon turning it over he saw "Winner" printed at its base. "I've seen this before. It's from that popsicle shop in the square where that old duck sells ice cream. If you get a stick that says winner you get a free ice cream."

"Sounds like we need to pay Mr. Mc'Duck a visit." Mickey suggested.

* * *

_**...Radiant Gardens Town Square...**_

The group had made their way over to the corner shop where Business Tycoon Scrooge Mc'Duck had his ice cream shop. As they rounded the corner they were greeted with a strange sight.

Scrooge was on the phone, and while he sounded calm, he was showing that he was under a lot of stress. His feathers were ruffled and there seemed to be steam radiating from him.

"What do ya mean, my shipment never arrived?! I sent it out two days ago!" His Scottish accent was thick and full of anger. Suddenly his eyes shot open, he looked straight ahead with an expression of pure shock. "A Sea monster ATE my ice cream?!"

Scrooge moaned in distress and fell back onto his tail feathers, letting the phone swing on its cord. "Hello? Hello? Mr. Mc'Duck! Are you still there?" A voice called from the other end.

"Scrooge!" Mickey shouted as he and the others rushed to his aid. "Did something bad happen?"

Scrooge kept looking at the ground. "Aye, my entire shipment of sea salt ice cream is gone. Devoured by that giant devil fish, Monstro the Whale."

"Monstro?!" the group gasped in one voice.

"But I thought he went back home when the worlds were restored." Riku said, remembering how massive the creature was.

"I cannea say for sure why the beast refuses to go home, but I've crossed paths with him before. He's a right brute! always trying to swallow me up during my travels."

"Where was the shipment headed?" Leon asked.

Scrooge looked up at them, suddenly realizing he had an audience. His sorrowful expression changed into determined anger. He grabbed the phone.

"You still there? Good. Now, here's what I want you to do. I want another shipment to be made ready and sent out now! And if you so much as smell that fowl-finned monstrosity I want you to catch it! I don't care if it takes a net, a helicopter, you could use a blasted poke'ball for all I care, just make sure he's not harmed. He's gonna learn the hard way to pay Scrooge what he owes, even if he has to jump through fire hoops to do it!"

Scrooge hung up, slamming the receiver into the phone in the process before turning his attention back to the group. "That's the last shipment that whale's ever gonna ruin, or my name isn't Scrooge Mc'Duck! Now, how can I help you?"

"We was wonderin' why that little furry runt has been looking for these ice cream sticks you sell?" Cid asked.

"Stitch? Aye, that rascal's been giving me trouble, I saw him here not five days ago, he kept looking through my product claiming it was burnt and covered with ash!"

Riku and Mickey exchanged glances as Scrooge continued. "

I told him to get lost when he stole one of my ice cream bars and fled. I haven't seen him since."

* * *

_**...Twilight Town...**_

Sora and Goofy had rushed to the wooded area with Kairi following close behind. As they neared the edge of the forest where the mansion stood Sora saw Heyner, Pence and Olette surrounded by the dusks who danced around their victims, thrilled to have found three hearts to prey upon.

Just as the first dusk went to strike Sora burst from the trees and with one leap, sliced right through the nobody with one swing of his Keyblade. Goofy took out two more with his shield, which he had thrown only to have it come back to him like a boomerang.

The remaining dusks turned their attention to their attackers and struck back. Sora merely dashed around two of them, causing them to scan around, not sure where he had gone to. He finished them off by striking them from behind. Goofy took out another three and was about to aim for a forth when he noticed a Samuri-class nobody closing in on Sora.

"Look out!" Goofy shouted.

Sora turned just as the nobody brought down his sword, leaving the teen no time to react. It was Goofy to the rescue as he threw his shield, hitting the nobody and causing it to miss. Sora recovered quickly and with a few strokes from his keyblade the nobody had been defeated.

When the Dusks had been taken care of Sora was about to breathe a sigh of relief when several Assasin-class nobodies emerged from the trees.

"Oh come on!" Sora cried out.

"Where are they all coming from?" Kairi asked as she ran up to stand beside Olette.

Sora and Goofy took a defensive stance in front of the others as the nobodies closed in. At that moment a small twinkle caught Goofy's attention and he directed his gaze towards the sky. A Gummi ship appeared in the sky as it zoomed over Twilight Town.

Donald had arrived after the chipmunk mechanics had finished upgrading the ship. "Now where are those two?" The duck asked himself as he scanned the city below.

Suddenly, without warning a fireball shot right beside the ship, nearly striking the wing. Donald nearly jumped out of his feathers when the 'red alert' began flashing on the screen. "Whak! What's going on?"

Chip came scurrying up from the engine room. "We almost took a direct hit!" He shouted.

"But from where? This place isn't dangerous!" Donald flatly stated.

"It came from over there, in the forest I saw it from the window!" Echoed Dale's voice from the engine room.

Donald looked down below and saw Sora and Goofy fighting a large group of nobodies and it looked like they were in trouble.

"Nobodies?!" Donald shouted in surprise. "Hang on you two!" The feathered mage took the Gummi ship into a dive and swooped low. The nobodies never saw him coming as they were too focused on the key bearer. The Gummi ship took them out one by one as it came in for a swift landing.

* * *

**_Well, this chapter finally has some action. Does Stitch know something that the others don't? Apologies to those who weren't expecting a reference to Pokemon. To be honest, I couldn't help myself. x3 Also, from the moment I decided to give Scrooge a speaking role in here, I wanted to make him say that line. It was one of my favorite lines from the Ducktales series and never failed to make me laugh. I don't remember the title of the episode he said that line, but it was funny regardless. xD  
_**

**_The next chapter has already been started and should be up within a few days or so. Stay tuned! :)_**


	6. Chapter Five: Hidden Notes

_**Hey guys! I know it took me a bit to upload this chapter and I apologize, I've been so busy lately that I'm lucky to get an hour by the computer these days. I hope this longer chapter makes up for it. I got an amazing idea for this story and look forward to writing it out. Chapter six shouldn't be too far away either. I'm in the process of writing that one now as well as Chapter Two for "One Complete Heart" That should be up soon as well. Until then, enjoy!  
**_

* * *

**Chapter Five:**

**Hidden Notes**

The main hatch to the Gummi Ship opened up as Donald charged outside. "Whak! Let me at 'em! Let me at 'em!" He shouted, waving his staff.

"Relax Donald, you got 'em all." Sora said with a smile as he approached his feathered friend.

Donald didn't look very pleased. "I was talking about you! You almost crashed the Gummi Ship!"

Sora held up his hands defensively as Donald made as if to strike the key bearer with his staff. "It was the only way to get your attention! I wasn't purposely aiming for the ship."

Goofy nodded and walked over to stand beside Sora. "Yeah, it was meant as a signal flare, a-hyuck!"

Donald folded his arms and tapped his webbed foot, signalling that he was still sore, but he eventually gave in with a sigh. "Well, the ship's still in one piece. I guess I can let it slide...'This' time."

With that out of the way Sora turned his attention over towards Hayner and the others. "What were you doing out here?"

"Hayner felt guilty about what he said when you left," Pence stated. "So we thought the mansion may have some clues about where to start looking for Axel. Olette remembered seeing him and another boy with blonde, spiky hair with matching black jackets coming and going through town."

"Yeah, and I saw them both rush towards the mansion once when that monster was stomping around the forest," Olette added, "but that was a long time ago, way before we met you, Sora."

"That's why I said this was a dumb idea. Even if they were here, the trail's way too cold now." Hayner flatly stated.

"Blonde, spiky hair..." Sora repeated. He went into his bag and pulled out a small picture. It was one he had carried for a while now. He thought it was a good time to show it. "That kid with Axel, did he looked something like this?"

The three looked at the picture and blinked in confusion.

"Yeah, that's him." Olette admitted.

"But, why's he in a picture with us?" Pence asked.

"I certainly don't remember hanging out with him." Hayner replied.

Something deep within Sora hurt; a sharp stabbing pain that pierced right through his heart, however it was gone as quickly as it came. "His name is Roxas, he was Axel's best friend." Sora replied.

"Roxas..." Hayner repeated, trying to figure out why that name sounded so familiar.

"Maybe we met him at the last Struggle Tournament?" Olette suggested.

"Maybe, but I don't remember snapping a photo with him at the mansion." Hayner replied.

Donald walked up to the group and pushed past them. "C'mon, we've got work to do, we can't stand out here all day looking at pictures."

Sora, Goofy and Kairi followed their feathered friend as the others hesitated for a moment before following. Once they got inside they were faced with a building that had been left in ruins. furniture was broken, chairs were knocked over and some of the windows were cracked and broken, letting in quite the draft. Pence looked up at the ceiling and gave an impressed whistle.

"I bet this place was real luxurious in its hayday." He stated.

"I bet they through great parties." Olette added. Kairi nodded in agreement.

Sora looked around the foyer before glancing up the stairs. "Let's split up. Hayner; you and your friends search upstairs...Kairi, Donald, Goofy and I will search down here. We'll meet back here in half an hour."

The search teams split off and as Sora tried clearing the doorway to one room Donald and the others headed for the door across the way. "Sora!" Goofy called, as the teen looked up, grinned sheepishly and followed after them.

When he caught up, Donald and Kairi were already looking for clues. "Well, whoever lived here sure let the place fall apart." She stated waving her hand as a dust cloud flew up in her face from the book she had just closed.

Donald was searching around the fire-place when he looked over at Sora. "What are you doing?"

The key bearer, who was pulling random books half way out of their shelves didn't take his eyes off the hard-covers as he answered. "I'm trying to see if there's a secret passage."

Donald rolled his eyes. "As if the Organization would make it that easy."

No sooner had the duck finished his sentence did Goofy pull a book from the opposite shelf, causing a section of the shelf to slide back and shift to the side, revealing a secret room.

"Gawrsh, this place is just full of surprises, ey Donald? A-hyuck!"

Donald slapped a hand over his face, covering his eyes in frustration as Sora followed behind Goofy with a smile; happy that he had the right idea. Kairi followed behind them. Donald wasn't going to follow, but as the shelf began to fall back into place he quickly changed his mind and ran through just before it closed.

* * *

_**...Radiant Gardens...**_

After the group had left Scrooge to his own business King Mickey led them to a more quieter spot. "Well, at least we found out one thing..." He began.

"Yeah, that little alien knows somethin' we don't." Cid finished.

Leon folded his arms, deep in thought. "But he's so hard to track down. One minute he's in Radiant Gardens the next he's in Disney Castle. He could be anywhere by now."

Riku shrugged his shoulders. "Then that's our mission. While Sora and the others look for clues, our job is to find Stitch."

"Or at least what Stitch is after." Leon added.

The rest of the group nodded in agreement.

* * *

_**...Twilight Town: Secret Study...**_

The group of four had been plunged into pure darkness after the book shelf had slid back into place. Muffled complaints could be heard all around as they tried to find an opening in the small cramped space while also trying to find a light source.

"Ow! Goofy, get off my foot!"

"Whoops, sorry Sora."

"Ah! Your shield jabbed me in the back!"

"Gawrsh, sorry Kairi."

"Whak! That's my beak, not a keyhole!"

"Sorry Donald."

"Ugh! I've had enough of this! Get me outta here!"

As if someone heard the young girl's cry a door opened and the four fell through in a tangled heap. Donald and Goofy were still a little dazed as Sora helped Kairi to her feet.

Once the four had recovered they looked around the room. There were several computers and other electronic devices on one side of the room while the other side was crammed with books, scrolls and other important-looking papers.

"Gawrsh, what sorta place is this suppose to be?" Goofy asked.

"How are we suppose to know?" Donald retorted, still rubbing his beak where the Keyblade had jabbed him.

Sora walked around the room and looked at the computers. It was there he noticed a platform. "This looks like the room that links to that other Twilight Town, the one that Roxas lived in...but, it's different. These computers don't look the same."

He sat down and hovered his fingers over the computer keys, wondering what to type in when Kairi pushed him out of the way. "Move over, we both know how useless you are with computers."

"Hey, I didn't mean to crash your computer, it was an accident." He replied with a sour note, recalling how he had crashed her brand new computer that she had gotten for her birthday one year.

It had barely taken five minutes and already Kairi had brought up the main screen. "Got it!" She proclaimed with a smile.

Donald and the others looked at the screen as Kairi read some of the file folders.

"Secrets of the DTD,...Project Shadows,..."

"Hey, what's that one?" Goofy asked, cutting her off.

"Key of Light?" Kairi asked and then clicked on it when Goofy nodded.

The file opened and revealed a report full of information about the keyblade, including a list of the many forms it can take, complete with visuals of each one. There was also something the group noticed quite clearly. A photo of Sora was in the file as well, along with a full report of him including his complete history and heroic deeds.

"Wow, Ansem has really been keeping track of everything." Sora stated, feeling both proud; reading all of the things he had accomplished and a bit uneasy, knowing that Ansem had known almost every little detail about every adventure he had been on.

"Yanno, I bet it was probably him that put us in those sleeping chambers." Goofy stated.

Kairi nodded as she had closed the file of Sora and opened another one. "He's right, look at this."

She pulled up another file and began reading what it said. It didn't take long to realize it was a journal of sorts.

* * *

_Ever since that incident in Hallow Bastion, when the keyblade's chosen one had been temporarily turned into a heartless, it was believed that another being was created aside from the shadow. The chosen one would have to be both strong of heart and strong of will in order to have any hope of defeating these creatures of darkness. If my suspicions are proven correct then a nobody was also created in that same moment his heartless emerged. _

_..._

_I had searched far and wide to find this nobody, with almost no idea what to look for. This nobody could have taken any form and who knows how many forms of nobodies are truly out there. My research was only to study heartless, but these other creatures; they're in a class all of their own. _

_..._

_I seem to have discovered something quite interesting. While taking a break from my studies I traveled to the town square and saw two figures in matching black jackets. They were both carrying an ice cream bar and were too busy talking amongst themselves to notice that I was watching them, or perhaps they didn't care. One was tall, with spiked, fiery hair and the other was shorter and looked like a young teenager. His hair was blonde and spiked as well, though not as much as his older friend. _

_I followed them to the train station where I thought I had lost them until I heard a commotion coming from nearby. It was them, fighting a group of heartless. The older man had two weapons that were surrounded by flames which he spun in his hand, taking out the heartless with hardly any effort, but it was the other one that had my full attention. He was wielding a keyblade, identical to the one wielded by the chosen one! I knew then that I had found Sora's nobody. _

_..._

_It had taken me some time to find Roxas again, but with 'Ansem's' help I managed to trap Roxas in an artificial world until Namin`e could gather all of Sora's lost memories. She was trying, but her efforts were taking too long. I now know why, it was Roxas's friend, Axel. He had made her efforts difficult as he searched for his friend. He had traveled to many worlds, leaving clues like bread crumbs for Roxas to find. _

_I believe the reason for his actions was the same as what we were trying to do for Sora, who Namin`e had sent to sleep in another room, promising his memories would be returned to him. _

_..._

_I believe I have stumbled onto something yet again. After the success with reviving Sora from his slumber I have come to the realization that while the heart is a powerful force, so too are the memories kept within one's heart. For while Sora awakened when his memories were restored, I realized that Roxas had remembered everything I had erased. He fully remembered his life within Organization Thirteen and of his friend. I realized too late that not only can a nobody be saved by their memories, but it must also mean that they are not without..._

* * *

_**Ou- Cliff-hangers, don'cha just hate 'em? I figured here was a good place to stop since the next bit is also a little long. Looks like our heroes have found a secret room filled with all kinds of knowledge including a little ego-boosting for Sora, like he needed another bit of proof to see how awesome he is. xD**_

_**This was inspired by a part in the second game in which Roxas couldn't go through one doorway in the mansion, it made me curious and so I just assumed it may have been a secret room filled with Ansem's important research aside from his office in Hollow Bastion. Also, I wanted to add that the '...' in the report on Ansem's computer are separate notes written at different times. **_

_**Hope you enjoyed chapter Five, Chapter Six is in the works. **_

_**Review? :3**_


	7. Chapter Six: The Path is Set

_**Phew! I finally got this chapter finished! *throws confetti* Party at Sora's house! I felt bad that it had taken me so long to update, so I made this chapter a bit longer then it originally was. hopefully that makes up for the late update? Enjoy!**_

_**Disclaimer! I do not own Kingdom Hearts, all characters belong to Disney and Square Enix.**_

* * *

**Chapter Six:**

**The Path is Set**

"Without what?" Donald asked.

Kairi scrolled up and down the page before shaking her head. "It doesn't say. The report just ends..."

"Why would he leave it blank like that? It's almost like he just up and left." Sora stated. "Does the entry have a date?"

Kairi looked and nodded. "The last entry was written not long ago. What are you getting at, Sora?"

The teen folded his arms in thought. "It wasn't that long ago when we were at the Organization's home world, maybe he stopped writing because he had realized something about what they were about to do. What if whatever he was about to write made him realize that he had to act on it and help us instead of sitting back and watching."

"You mean with that do-hickey he was using?" Goofy asked.

"Maybe, he did say he was wrong about the nobodies." Sora replied.

"He also said he was wrong about the measure of the heart." Kairi added.

"Right," Sora nodded, "he also apologized to Roxas, I bet whatever he had discovered had something to do with the connection between the heartless and the nobodies."

"Who knows." Said Donald. "We better let the king know about this place."

"Yeah, good idea. We still haven't searched the whole place yet, and I'm curious to see what the others might have found." Sora said as he, Donald and Goofy started to head back the way they came.

"Hold on!" Kairi called to them, causing them to stop dead in their tracks.

"There's a small file that you should look at Sora." The key bearer walked up to the screen and read the file aloud: "To Roxas."

Kairi clicked on the file and it opened what appeared to be a letter directed to the nobody.

**_. . ._**

_Roxas,_

_I realize I was wrong to assume you were just an empty vessel with no true emotions, I treated you as nothing more than a hollow being and for that I am sorry. While I had tried to help Namine gather Sora's memories I had also tried to make you forget everything you knew, but your friend Axel proved something to me. He proved that Nobodies did indeed feel emotion. While he traveled from world to world looking for you I first assumed it was because you were an important key to Organization Thirteen's plan to unlock Kingdom Hearts, but I was wrong. Unbeknownst to me, Axel had turned his back on the Organization to look for you and while he searched he had left clues that only you would be able to find. _

_I realize now that he was looking for you because he truly missed your friendship. I know that my mission is to try and undo all of the damage I've caused, but I can't possibly do that while sacrificing the lives of the innocent in the process. If you are reading this, Roxas, it can only mean that Sora is truly the one searching. Brave Key Bearer, I know you've done so much to protect the many worlds and undo all the trouble I have caused, but there is one last request I'd like to ask of you. I have made a discovery while building the device I used at the top of the tower, deep within the Nobody's stronghold. This discovery led me to create that platform you see in this room. You can use it to bring back a nobody that has been lost. All you need are the clues they left behind. Find them and scan them into the machine and with it, revive them._

_This is both my gift to the Keyblade's chosen one and my apology to Roxas, I hope it will make up for all of the trouble my foolish desires have caused. Sadly, I cannot tell you where these clues are located, that task is left to you. Sora, let Roxas help guide you in the right direction. And who knows, he may have been already helping you for sometime now._

_Good luck,_

_Ansem the Wise._

**_. . ._**

As Sora finished reading the letter he turned to the others, they were all smiling.

"You were right, Sora!" Goofy shouted with a big grin.

"Once we find all the clues we can bring Axel back!" Donald shouted.

"It's pretty amazing that Ansem built that machine just for that single purpose. He must have known this would happen from the start." Kairi added.

"Well, I don't know about that, he said the machine was more of an apology. Maybe he felt bad for saying Nobodies had no real feelings." Sora replied.

"Sora! Donald, Goofy! Kairi, where are you guys?" a voice called from the doorway they had just come from.

"Looks like it's been half an hour already." Kairi said as she got up from the computer. The others followed her out of the door. Sora was psyched. Finally his path had been set and he knew what he had to do. He only hoped the flashbacks he kept getting from Roxas would keep coming.

* * *

_**...A few minutes later...**_

Sora and the others met back up with Hayner's gang back in the foyer where they had split up and revealed what they had found. Sora and Goofy had told them about the secret room and what it said.

"Wow, sounds like you had better luck then we did." Pence commented when they had finished. He stepped back as Olette showed what they had found. "We didn't find a whole lot in the library upstairs, just some old dusty volumes, but in the other room everything was so bright and drawings were scattered everywhere."

She turned the paper around and showed them the drawings one by one. "This one looks like Roxas and Axel..." She waited a moment before flipping the next page over it. "...and this one looks like Roxas running into a jagged doorway made of crystal..." Again, she waited before turning to the last page. "This one here shows Roxas standing next to you, Sora. Who do you think drew all of these?"

"It must have been Nomine." Kairi guessed.

"That's right."

Everyone turned to the entrance where the voice had come from. Riku was standing there with the king.

"You're majesty!" Both Goofy and Donald bowed in respect as the two new-comers approached.

"How do you know that Riku?" Kairi asked as the silver-haired teen approached his two best friends.

"Because I was the one who was helping her and Diz." He replied.

"Oh, I get it, when you looked like Xeanort's heartless." Sora realized.

"That musta been who Ansem was referring to in his journal." Goofy added.

"What journal?" Mickey asked.

_**...A few minutes later...**_

"I see, so you think if you can find these clues that Axel left behind then you can use the machine to restore him?" Mickey gathered.

The group nodded.

"Well, then it looks like we're both on the right track."

"Have you found any clues, your majesty?" Sora asked.

"No, but I think we discovered someone who has. Remember the one who made a mess in my library?" mickey asked.

"You mean Stitch?" Donald guessed.

"Yep, he's been goin' around looking for things that Axel left behind. Think back, there was a popsicle stick in the library, there was also one found in Ansem's office. We went to visit Scrooge to see if he knew anything and he reported seeing Stitch a few days ago."

"We think Stitch is on to something." Riku stated. "That's why we came here, it's the only other world nearby where they sell Sea Salt Ice Cream."

"Yeah, that would make sense. It seemed Axel and Roxas used to hang out here a lot." sora added.

Mickey gave him a strange look until Goofy placed a hand on Sora's shoulder. "He blacked out again."

"Again?" Riku asked.

Kairi and Goofy explained what had happened. When they had finished Riku was beginning to worry a bit for his friend and as he looked down at the king it was clear that they were thinking the same thing.

"Sora," Mickey began. "I think you should be careful about trying to force those memories."

"I'm fine, don't worry about me, it only lasts for a few moments and I feel good as new." Sora replied, trying to show that he could handle it.

Riku wasn't convinced in the least.

"I know you mean well Sora, but you have to take your own health into account as well." Mickey told him. "It seems like they come at random, what if you're in the middle of a battle? You can't let them take over you like that."

"But," The spiky-haired teen protested.

"No buts Sora." Riku argued with a glare. "You've come too far to give the darkness an easy shot at you. Do you really think someone like Xeanort or Maleficent will wait until you wake up to attack? You'll be lost to the darkness and we might not be able to save you."

Sora looked down at the ground, he hated to admit it, but Riku was right, as he most often was. Kairi placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"That's why we need to stick together, all of us. We'll find the clues Axel left behind and fix everything, okay?" She asked him with a gentle voice.

Sora glanced at her and nodded as he responded to her kind words with a small smile.

"Alright," Mickey announced. "Hayner, Pence, Olette, you three let us know if you find out anything about Stitch. Riku, I want you to go with Sora, Donald, Goofy and Kairi and help them."

"What about you, you're majesty?" Riku asked.

"I'll be fine. I've got some things to take care of" Mickey replied. "I think you should head for Master Yen Sid's house and see if he has any advice that might come in handy."

The group nodded and headed back to the gummi ship after saying farewell to Hayner's gang.

* * *

Far away on another world, deep within the World that Never Was, Maleficent was pacing around her new castle. Ever since Xemnas' defeat she had successfully expelled all of the pesky nobodies that had been left behind and was now walking down one of the newly decorated halls. Ahead of her was the meeting room and from the raised voices, it sounded as if the meeting had already begun without her.

She took a moment to hear what the others were so worked up over.

"D'aww how cute, the brat cares about finding a worthless nobody." Came the voice of Hades as he watched the center of the display which showed Sora's group talking to Hayner and Olette while Riku was talking to Pence as the others listened.

"Relax, Hades. The boy has no idea what dangers lie ahead of him. Rest assured, if he sets foot in my domain I shall take care of him." Came the cold, raspy voice of a horned figure in a red cloak.

"That's what we thought the first time we fought the little bilgerat. But he manages to defeat us at every turn. What makes you think you can do better?" Came the voice of Captain Hook.

The figure's hollow eyes glowed red with malice. "You failed because your plans were weak. Hook's plan had the best chance for success, had it not been for his childish fear of clocks."

Captain Hook's eye began to twitch. "What did you just say? You'll walk that plank for that!"

"Enough!" Came Maleficent's voice as she entered the room. "Sora played into our hands quite nicely when he got rid of that pesky organization's leader, but his usefulness has come to an end."

She then glanced over at the hooded creeper who kept his identity hidden in the darkness. "What exactly did you have in mind?"

* * *

_**Now this new guy here, he's from an old Disney movie that isn't so well-known. Major Brownie points to whoever guesses it right! This last scene was originally going to be the starting point for the next chapter, but it fits in better here. Hope you enjoyed. If all goes well the next chapter shouldn't take nearly as long to update. :)**_


	8. Chapter Seven: It's a Vast Universe

_**Well here's the new chapter. I have to say it's nice to know that I haven't been hit with a full-force writer's block. My dreams have really been helping too. **_

_**Disclaimer! Kingdom Hearts and all related characters belong to Disney and Square Enix, I only claim the story plot. enjoy!**_

* * *

**Chapter Seven: It's a Vast Universe**

The gummi ship had left Twilight Town behind as it made its way towards the house of the powerful wizard known as Yen Sid. After the incident with the nobodies, Donald had refused to let Sora pilot, so he was left to sit in one of the passenger seats. It wasn't all bad though, he was sitting next to Kairi at least.

He glanced at her with a smile and was about to say something when he noticed the smirk Riku was giving him. Sora's face flushed with embarrassment and he quickly turned his gaze back to the window.

They were gliding just above the tracks where the train connected between the wizard's house and Twilight Town's train station. Riku stretched his arms in the air and gave a loud yawn. "Boy, this sure beats the train."

"C'mon, Riku, they're not all bad." Sora replied.

"Hey, I like trains as much as the next guy, but there are other, more enjoyable means of transportation." Riku retorted.

"Speaking of transportation, how'd you end up in Twilight Town, Kairi?" Sora asked.

"Um,..." Kairi went into her backpack that she had brought along with her. It was pink with light blue zippers and a heart on the flap, which she opened and pulled out a silver shard. "I used one of these." She replied.

Sora took one and looked at it closely. "What is it?"

"I don't remember what they're called. The last time I used one was when I was very young. They can teleport you anywhere, even to a different world."

"Maybe that's how you ended up on our island?" Riku voiced, remembering how he and Sora had found Kairi washed up on the beach with no explanation.

"Could be..." Kairi responded, looking down in an attempt to hide an unexplained feeling of sadness that threatened to wash over her.

Sora saw this and tried to think of a way to cheer her up. "Hey, it turned out for the better in the end right? I mean, you got to meet us!"

Kairi looked up at him and then glanced over at Riku who was also smiling. "Sora's right, and looked at everything that's happened since then. Not only did we get off that island and see other worlds, but we got stronger, and made new friends. We're so much better off now and it's all thanks to you."

"Exactly!" Sora agreed. "We should all be thanking you."

Kairi looked between her two friends; the greatest friends anyone could ever have and nodded, closing her eyes with small tears of joy. "Heh, well in that case, ...you're welcome!"

Donald and Goofy had kept their eyes on the path ahead, but was listening to the conversation in the back. They too, were grateful to Kairi, for without her they might not have met Sora and gone on their great adventures. A flashing red light came up on Goofy's screen which snapped everyone out of the moment.

"Master Yen Sid's house, dead ahead!" Goofy happily declared.

The gummi ship soared over the top of the tower before coming back around to land in the front yard. As the group exited the aircraft there was something that seemed different about the place.

"Something's not quite right..." Sora commented.

"You're right, but what is it?" Goofy asked, looking around.

Donald picked up his mage's staff. "More heartless?"

"Duck!"

Everyone who heard that comment hit the deck except for Donald who turned towards the direction the voice had come from. "What?"

Thunk!

A hockey puck had come sailing through the air and struck Donald right in his beak. He fell back with a heavy thud. Kairi and Goofy looked down at their friend. They could almost see little hockey pucks with wings dancing around Donald's head.

"Guess you hit it a little too hard." Came a different voice, that sounded like its owner had a stuffed up nose.

"Well, it would've been a perfect shot if they hadn't gotten in the way." Replied the first voice, which sounded raspy, yet female.

Sora looked back over near the front door and saw two ducklings walking towards the group. One was wearing glasses and a green shirt which was barely visible under all of the soft padding to protect him from the sport they had been playing. The other one was a girl wearing a purple jersey with the number one in bold white. She had red hair and wore it in two pig tails. She waved her hockey stick at the group in a greeting.

"Sorry about that, you gonna toss the puck back or what?" She asked.

"Who are you..." Riku asked them, "...and what are you doing here?"

"The name's Gosalyn, and this here is my best pal, Honker." The girl replied.

"Hi." Honker said shyly with a small wave."

"We're waiting here while a friend of ours is taking her magic test."

"Well, I'm Sora," Sora began the introductions. "That's Goofy, Kairi and Riku, and he's Donald." The teen pointed to the duck who was still out cold on the ground.

"We came to see Master Yen Sid, is he here?" Kairi asked.

"You mean that old guy with the pointy hat? Yeah, he's here. He's the one giving Morgana her test." Gosalyn answered.

"Gosalyn, be more respectful. Yen Sid is very powerful." Honker warned. "You don't want to go making him mad."

"Oh lighten up, Honk! What's the worst he could do? Sneeze magic green powder from his nose?"

"Actually, it's blue." Came a new voice from behind the kids.

They all looked up to see the mighty sorcerer standing outside his front door. Honker gulped nervously as Goofy and the now fully awake Donald bowed in respect. Sora merely waved.

"Sora, Donald, Goofy...it's good to see you again." Yen Sid greeted them. "And I see you've finally found your friends, I'm glad."

"If you don't mind me asking master, what are these two rugrats doing here?" Donald asked, trying to fight the headache that was coming on.

"Rugrat?!" Gosalyn stomped her sneaker down on Donald's foot causing him to dance in pain.

"That's enough of that, Miss Mallard. Please, come inside all of you. We have much to discuss." The master opened the doors wider for them as he stepped inside. Gosalyn and Donald glared at each other as they passed through the entrance, neither one trusting the other.

As they made their way up the spiral staircase Honker couldn't help but voice his thoughts.

"So, h-how did Morgana's test g-go?" He stuttered as his nerves began to get to him.

"I bet she turned the entire room into pudding!" Gosalyn added.

Sora and his friends didn't quite know what to make of the girl's statement and thought better not to ask.

Yen Sid seemed to deflate a bit as he reached the door to the top of the stairs. "See for yourself." He opened it and revealed the end result of the test.

Morgana; another duck with black hair and a beautiful red dress sat in a chair with a depressed expression while all around the room several enchanted brooms were cleaning up the mess. Thick blobs of pink pudding littered the room. Dripping from the ceiling, sticking to books and mucking up the floor. It looked like mini explosion had gone off in the room.

"She still has some practicing to do." Yen Sid told the group.

Gosalyn on the other hand was completely impressed. "Keen Gear! This is even better than the time you turned Dad into pudding!"

Morgana covered her eyes in embarrassment at the mere thought of that horrible incident. Her very posture seemed to shout: "Don't remind me!"

"Hey, it's alright, this is nothing compared to the first time I used magic. At least you didn't set anybody on fire." Sora said, trying to comfort the distressed sorceress.

Morgana returned his kindness with a small smile. "I had a feeling I wasn't ready for the mastery exam, but at least it can easily be cleaned. Please excuse my manners, I am Morgana McCawber, Master Yen Sid has already told me about you. You're heroic deeds seem to rival that of my Dark's."

"Huh?" Sora asked

"My dad. She and him are sort of a couple." Gosalyn flatly stated.

"Well, I wouldn't go that far, Gosalyn. We haven't been dating for that long." Morgana said with a slight blush.

Kairi smiled. "You can tell she really likes him."

"Anyway," Riku loudly stated, trying to change the subject, "We came to ask for your help, Master."

"And what can I do for you, warriors of the keyblade?"

"We were hoping you could tell us which worlds Axel had visited." Riku replied.

Master Yen Sid gave Riku a stern look before nodding and turned toward his study. "Sora, you and your friends follow me."

The five didn't argue and hurried after the sorcerer. When they got there, they were led down the hall that rounded his office. They entered the room and Sora remembered that was where he had first learned what a nobody was. Everything still looked just as they had left it. Master Yen Sid sat down at his desk while the five stood in a row across from him.

"Out of all of the nobodies, Axel has proven to be the most difficult, the most unusual and perhaps the most stubborn, even more so than Roxas. The Flurry of Dancing Flames has proven himself to be extremely cunning and in the end, I suspect nearly everything had gone according to his plans."

"But, I thought he worked for Xemnas from the start." Kairi stated.

"I thought that as well, but it seems he had been following his own agenda nearly the entire time. Who knows when he really turned against the Organization, perhaps he merely played the part to protect himself and possibly to look out for Roxas."

"Sir, if you don't mind my asking, how do you know all of this?" Sora asked.

Yen Sid merely smiled. "While my magic is powerful, I am not psychic. Mickey has told me about the nobodies and how the events played out in The World That Never Was. After he pieced everything together, I believe many of the organization's members faded peacefully."

Yen Sid leaned forward and brought his folded hands to his chin thought. "However, I'm afraid a few faded feeling pure hatred and one in particular vowed his revenge."

"Xemnas." Both Riku and Sora said as one.

Yen Sid nodded. "I'm afraid we may not have seen the last of him, though I cannot be certain what form he may take the next time you face him. I do know one thing, if he has survived, he is very weak. The forces of darkness are not as strong as they once were."

"Then we musta done a pretty good job!" Goofy proudly announced.

"Now all we gotta do is get rid of whats left of the heartless and the nobodies and the worlds will be safe again!" Donald added.

"It's not quite that easy." The sorcerer pointed out. "There's still Maleficent to deal with."

"That's right!" Sora replied. "And I don't think she'll be as helpful as she was at Xemnas' castle." He thought back to when he, Riku, Kairi, Goofy and Donald were making their way to the top of the castle and had become surrounded by Nobodies and a swarming mass of heartless. It was Maleficent and Pete who fought them off and let Sora and his friends move forward.

"Well, we beat her before, I'm sure we can do it again." Donald said. He remembered it wasn't easy to defeat the witch, but they managed to pull it off without serious injury.

"So,...do you know where we should start looking for the clues Axel left behind?" Kairi asked.

Yen Sid nodded. "I have a good guess that will lead you on the right path." He held out a strange-looking gummi block. "This Navi-G piece contains a map of worlds that have recently connected. I believe the paths to these worlds opened up when you released the hearts that the nobodies had collected. As a result they are also vulnerable to the heartless. While you search for the clues to help your friend, I would kindly ask that you lock the hearts of these worlds and protect them from the heartless."

Donald took the gummi block and smiled. "Thanks, Master."

"I wish you luck on your journey." Yen Sid replied with a nod.

"Don't worry, we'll be fine!" Sora promised as he and the others made to leave.

Sora opened the door only for a familiar red-head to tumble forward. Gosalyn looked up to see five pairs of eyes looking down at her. "Heh, I-uh, was looking for...my hockey puck! Have you guys seen it?" she asked sheepishly, trying to get out of being caught.

"Considering you left it outside where it belongs, I'd say you were eavesdropping." Riku flatly stated, folding his arms.

Gosalyn sighed. "Alright, so what if I was listening in. You guys sound like you could use more help, and I'm just the duck for the job."

"Hah! What can a little shrimp like you do?" Donald quacked.

"I can do plenty! I once fought the entire fearsome five!" She boasted jabbing a thumb towards her.

"I thought your dad had to come and save you." Honker voiced from the hallway.

"Details, details, the point was, I held them off long enough for him to get there."

"We don't have time for this!" Riku complained with a frustrated sigh.

Sora got down on one knee to be eye level with the young duckling. "What if your dad needs you while we're gone? He'd need you there to back him up. We'll be fine, I promise and we'll even come back to visit when we're all done. Okay?"

Gosalyn was looking off to the side in a pout, but finally gave in. "Okay fine, but take this with you,...just in case."

She handed him a charm necklace that he instantly recognized as a summoning charm. It's stone was purple with a strange-looking weapon on it. "Dad gave it to me, he called it the 'Gas Gun' charm. He told me to use it if I ran into trouble and he wasn't around, but I think you might need it more. Yen Sid's place is pretty safe...and kinda boring."

Sora smiled as he placed the charm in his pocket. "Thanks Gosalyn. I'll keep it safe and give it back when our journey's over."

"Bye Honker!" Kairi called to the young duckling who waved back in return. Morgana had also waved farewell as she had rounded the corner, looking for the two kids.

As the group made it's way inside the gummi ship Donald began installing the new gummi block with Chip n' Dale's help.

As Kairi sat on one of the bench-like seats she couldn't keep the smile off her face.

"What's up Kairi?" Sora asked, wondering what she was so cheery about.

"Just those two kids. They kinda remind me of us when we were their age."

"Yeah, Sora was about annoying as that girl." Riku teased.

"I was not, and Gosalyn's not annoying, she just...has a lot of spirit." Sora retorted, fighting the urge to stick out his lower lip in a pout.

This earned a giggle from both Kairi and Goofy.

The engines soon kicked to life, signalling that the gummi block had been installed. "We're all set and ready to go!" Donald announced as the group prepared themselves for the take off.

"Next stop, A new world!"

With that the gummi ship shot off into the starry sky, heading for new worlds and the beginning of their journey.

* * *

_**Why is it that some characters are easy to write for while others are a royal pain? *sigh* oh well, at least this chapter's out of the way. I had started this chapter slowly after updating the last one, but had to keep deleting and re-writing it. I wasn't going to add these three characters in here, but in the end I couldn't resist. x3 Next chapter brings us to our first world! W00T! :3**_


	9. Chapter Eight: The Festival of Fools

_**Well this is awkward. I wasn't really planning on updating THIS soon. I was going to spend the next few days doing research for the first world; watching the movie, going over details of the locations, yada yada and turns out the first chapter pretty much wrote itself(really likes it when that happens). xD I was informed that Riku seemed a wee-bit grumpy in the last chapter and I agree. So, I decided to let him let loose a little bit. Anyways, the Festival is here! Let's go have some fun!**_

_**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and all related characters belong to Disney and Square Enix. **_

* * *

**Chapter Eight: The Festival of Fools**

A flock of birds scattered from the streets as a woman in a white and purple dress ran through the streets. Her companion, a goat followed at her heels.

"Where'd she go?" Shouted a voice from down the street.

"Over there!" Shouted another as three soldiers in dark grey armor charged down the old cobblestone streets after the woman.

The woman kept running until she was faced with a dead end. The guards quickly blocked off her escape. "All right, Gypsy. Hand over the money you stole."

The woman flipped her thick, black hair back and placed her hands on her hips. "For your information, I earned it!"

The soldiers exchanged looks between each other and advanced on the woman. "Gypsies don't know how to make an honest living, they're too busy learning how to con the innocent."

"Maybe a day in the stocks will teach her a lesson."

The soldiers were about to capture her when her goat took action. He bucked one soldier between the legs and struck the other two in their knees. They fell to the ground in a heap. The woman took her chance to jump over them and run.

"Thanks Jolly!" She called to her trusted friend as he followed closely behind.

* * *

**-*-*City of Fools*-*-**

* * *

Sora looked around at the world that he and his friends had arrived in. It reminded him of another world he had visited long ago. The buildings and houses were all bunched together on each street. Old shingles covered the roofs and blended in with the cobblestone streets.

"This place reminds me of Traverse Town." He commented aloud.

"I wonder what this world will be like?" Kairi asked.

"Remember Kairi,..." Donald voiced, "we can't let anyone know we're from another world."

"How come?" She asked.

"It would upset the world border." Goofy answered.

"Order!" Donald corrected him for the hundredth time.

"Oh, I see." Kairi added, feeling a bit discouraged. Riku placed a hand on her shoulder. "It'll be alright, we'll still make some new friends."

Kairi smiled at this and nodded her head.

The group continued to make its way down the street when a cheerful tune began to play. This was followed by cheers and a crowd of voices began singing a melodious tune.

_"Come One, come all!_

_Leave your looms and milking stools, Coop the hens and pen the mules,_

_Come one, Come all!_

_Close the Churches and the schools, It's the day for breaking rules!_

_Come and join the Feast Of Fools!"_

Sora and the gang rushed around the corner only to have their faces light up at the sight that greeted them.

A crowd of people had gathered in a large square. They were all dressed in festive, colorful clothes. On closer look, Sora noticed that some of them were wearing masks and other strange costumes.

"It looks like one great big party!" Goofy commented with a smile.

"It looks like fun!" Kairi exclaimed.

"We don't have time for parties, we have to find Axel's clues and the keyhole." Donald replied, folding his arms.

"Oh come on, Donald! Let's go!" Kairi shouted as he grabbed the duck's hand and pulled him into the crowd. Sora, Goofy and Riku exchanged amused looks before following.

They made their way to the front of the lines to see the parade of Fools.

Several men in the lead were wearing dark cloaks with hoods covering their faces and carrying torches. Suddenly one man jumped from behind them in a colorful jester's costume, decorated with oddly matched orange and purple with a royal blue hat and a yellow feather sticking from the top. At once the men in cloaks tossed their grim robes off to the side and revealed equally colorful clothing. Their torches popped with confetti as decorative flags and banners waved where the torches once burned.

The people around started dancing as the music picked up.

_"Once a year we throw a party here in town._

_Once a year we turn all Paris upside down._

_Every man's a king and every king's a clown!_

_Once again it's Topsy-Turvy Day!"_

Sora and Goofy were quickly clapping along with the music. Kairi was laughing at the dogs who were walking their owners. Donald was trying to make sense of a man who was riding a two rear-ended horse, wondering where the head was. Riku tried not to lose his composer, but soon gave into a fit of laughter when he saw a lobster wheeling around a cauldron as the cook was sitting inside scrubbing his back.

Sora soon became part of the parade as several dancers in a line paraded down the street. Riku laughed as sora was dragged along, tripping over his own feet while trying to keep up, but he soon became part of it himself when Kairi grabbed his hand and jumped in next to Sora. Goofy and Donald laughed at the trio but was soon swept up in the crowd as they too were pulled into another line.

The dancing went on for a while until the leader of the Festival, Clopin jumped onto a nearby stage.

_"Come one, come all!_

_Hurry, hurry, here's you're chance._

_See the mystery and romance!_

_Come one, come all!_

_See the finest girl in France,_

_Make an entrance to entrance!_

_Dance La Esmeralda, DANCE!"_

On the final note he threw his arm down, setting off a small flash accompanied by a loud boom and pink smoke. In his place stood a woman with black hair and a red dress. She wore golden-hooped earrings and wore a purple sash about her waist. She had on a golden tiara, golden bracelets and waved a purple scarf that was decorated with moons and stars that reminded Sora of Master Yen Sid's house.

Her dance was very elegant, yet kept up with the upbeat tune. The group of five watched while she skipped across the stage to where a man was sitting on a throne. He wore a jet black robe and a strangely shaped black and purple hat. the dancer pranced up to him and preformed a few spins and waved her scarf around him. She leaned in close before tying the scarf around his neck and then pushed his hat over his face before doing a back flip back to the main stage.

She preformed an impressive spilt while winking at a hooded man in the crowd who further attempted to hide his face. For the grand finish, Esmeralda grabbed a spear from an entranced soldier and stuck the pointed end into the stage. Then, taking a powerful leap, she spun around the spear, using the momentum of the jump to spiral to the floor. With a final nod as the music finished the crowd exploded into applause. Sora and his friends cheered just as loud as the rest of the crowd.

The crowd began to disburse, and take part in some of the other events. These included, Dunk the Monk, Pin the Tail on the Judge, a pie eating contest, a dart challenge and bobbing for apples among many others.

The group decided to split up and enjoy more of the fun. Kairi decided to tag along with Goofy and Donald, Leaving Sora and Riku to head the other way.

It didn't take long for Goofy to try his luck at bobbing for apples. Kairi giggled and cheered for him when he managed to pull out two apples at once.

"We have a winner!" The man housing the event shouted, impressed.

"Gawrsh, I guess I'm just lucky, A-hyuck!" He replied modestly.

Donald rolled his eyes when a voice called over to him. "Yo! Is that a dinner plate or your face?!"

"Excuse me?" Donald asked, turning towards the voice with a glare.

The person who had addressed Donald was a man in a monk's robe, sitting on a platform hanging over a tank of water. "You could plow a field with that shovel!" He replied.

"Oh yeah?" Donald rolled up his sleeve as he stomped over to the booth. "And who do you think you are, ya big palooka!"

"Well, I know my face is prettier than yours, Squeaky! What's wrong with your voice? Someone step on your beak or was it always that flat?"

That did it. Donald picked up a ball and began throwing it at the target. It missed by a few feet. "I guess that honker of yours is throwing off your balance, try again!" The man egged him on.

Steam began to seep from Donald as his temper was nearing its limit. He threw his second ball. It flew too high, hitting another person in the back and sending him toppling into a barrel of clear, golden liquid. On the bright side, the man didn't seem too upset about his landing. Other people standing nearby laughed at his predicament.

"Missed again, you really 'quack' me up! Why don't you try hitting the next one off your beak like a paddle? I'm sure you'll get it this time!"

"Whaaa-aaa-ack! That does it!"

Donald made to launched himself at the man when Goofy came up from behind at the last minute and held him back. "Easy there, Donald. He's just trying to mess ya up. You gotta have a clear head to hit that target."

Donald said something that was hard for the group to understand, he was so flustered that his words were muffled under the weight of his temper.

"Let me have a go." Kairi said as she picked up only one ball.

"Oh, look at the little lady. At least your beak looks normal. Who colored your hair? A pink elephant, or did you just mix some food coloring in with your shamp-"

SPLASH!

The man in the monk's costume was cut off mid sentence as he got a mouth full of water. Kairi's aim was perfect and it was a clear bull's-eye.

"That's for my friend!" she called to him as she turned away from the booth and headed back to Donald and Goofy who were both laughing up a storm.

"Come on you two, let's get something to eat." She suggested, taking each of them by their hand.

"Sounds good ta me!" Goofy replied.

"Thanks Kairi." Donald added.

"What are friends for?" She answered.

Over on the other side of the square...

Sora had lost sight of Riku and was trying to find him. He knew he last saw the silver-haired teen by the face-painting booth, but he was nowhere to be seen. As Sora looked around a corner a stranger in a colorful gargoyle mask jumped out.

"**Boo**!"

"Agh!" Sora fell back, landing hard on the ground.

"The look on your face was priceless!"

The stranger in the mask held his sides in laughter before pulling off his mask.

"Riku! That wasn't funny!" Sora grumbled to his friend.

"Yes it was." Riku replied, still laughing.

"Where'd you get that?" The key bearer asked as Riku helped him back on his feet.

"Over there." Riku said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder at the booth behind him selling costumes. "They're holding a contest at the end of the festival to crown this year's king."

Sora looked over at the booth. There were several costumes, all with different themes and crazy colors. "So what, you lookin' to be the next King of Fools?" he asked.

Riku wasn't paying attention. His focus was on a booth across the way. "Hey Sora, remember that fish-eating contest we had?"

"How could I forget?" Sora answered with a grin. "We ended up feeling so sick afterwards that we lost count of how many fish we had eaten. We both agreed to call it a draw."

Riku nodded towards the booth before glancing at Sora. "Feel like breaking that tie?" Without another word he headed over towards the booth with Sora hot on his heels.

"Hey, wait up!"

* * *

_**Yup! Riku can kick back and have fun to. He just doesn't get to relax that much. I wonder who will win the contest? guess you'll just have to wait and see! ;3  
**_


	10. Chapter Nine: For Who The Bells Toll

_**Three updates in one week for the same story? That's a record. :) Looks like I'm in rare form this week. Thanks for the reviews. While you guys had fun reading the last chapter, I definitely had fun writing it. ^_^ Hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It's almost 3,600 words long?! *whistles* Enjoy!**_

* * *

**Chapter Nine: For Who The Bells Toll**

Kairi couldn't remember the last time she had so much fun. Goofy had made both her and Donald laugh until their stomachs hurt while trying to cheer up his feathered friend after the dunking booth. Goofy had been making fun of the jester in monk's clothing, normally he wouldn't make fun of someone, but even he would admit, _'He did kinda deserve it'_.

Donald's beak was a little bit sticky from the caramel apple he was eating and Goofy was munching on some popcorn. Kairi had eaten a small slice of pie that seemed to be a double layer. The top layer was strawberries while the bottom was blue berries. It surprisingly tasted pretty good.

As the trio walked down the isle of booths Donald and Goofy were telling Kairi of the many adventures they had while traveling with Sora. "Heh, sounds like you guys really had some amazing adventures."

"Yeah,..." Goofy agreed, "...and during our first journey all he ever talked about was finding you and Riku."

"Remember when he flew?" Donald asked his friend.

"I sure do, he kept saying how much he wished you could see it, Kairi." The friendly knight replied.

"That sounds pretty amazing. I wish I could fly. How'd he do it?" She asked.

Both Donald and Goofy glanced at each other with a knowing smile.

"Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust!" They both answered together.

It didn't make much sense to Kairi. She had nothing but faith and trust in her friends. However, she didn't exactly know what pixie dust was or where to find it."

"I'm assuming it had something to do with his keyblade?"

Goofy smiled. "Why don't ya ask Sora? I'm sure he'd love to tell ya about it."

Kairi smiled and nodded as she followed the two as they made their way along the street. They were soon drawn over to a commotion coming from one of the several contest booths.

"Look at those two go!" The announcer cried out. "In all my years of running this event I've never seen a pair of boys tunk in that many pies! Even last year's reigning champ has thrown in the towel!"

Kairi's group exchanged knowing looks. _'Pair of boys'_? That could only be Sora and Riku. "Let's go!"

They tried to make their way through the crowd, but it wasn't easy. Everyone was trying to catch a glance at the two scarfing titans who wolfed down any pie that dared to stray too close. It was Donald's idea to clear the crowd as he used his magic to send a small, yet weak electric beam through the crowd. It worked pretty well and as people jumped to avoid the static shock the trio quickly filled the gaps. Now with good spots the trio was free to get a clear view of the table. Kairi nearly doubled over in laughter.

Seven people were sitting at the table altogether. Five of them were sitting back with their hands over their bulging stomachs, obviously full and given up any hopes of winning the contest. On the far end was an entirely different matter. Several empty pie plates were piled high next to each boy. There had to be at least twelve in each stack. Both Sora and Riku were looking pretty full, but their speed didn't waver. Riku finished his fourteenth pie and grabbed the next one while Sora was right on his heels, barely three bites behind his friend.

"These boys sure know how to put it away, the question is, who will break first?" The announcer continued to shout the play-by-play as if he were broadcasting the final match of a major sport.

The two were now on their seventeenth pie and Riku was really struggling. Sora was catching up and they were soon neck and neck. However, their pace had slowed quite a bit and it was easy to tell they were fighting to finish each bite. Finally, as they both looked fit to burst they came upon the last bite of the pie. Riku tried, he took the last scoop on his fork and ate half of it, trying to force himself to swallow. He painfully managed that bite, but as he tried for the last piece, his will gave out and he dropped his fork.

It fell to the ground in slow motion and once it hit the ground, Riku's head hit the table as his stomach began to hurt, though to Riku it was screaming in pain. Now all eyes were on Sora as he tried to do what even Riku could not. He was in just as much pain as Riku, but if there was one thing he couldn't do, it was give up.

Sora's mind was a battlefield. The voices were telling him to stop, but they had taken form. He saw them as his greatest enemies. Xemnas, Maleficent, Hades, Pete and several of the nobodies he had defeated were all trying to persuade him to stop, but there was no way he was giving into their demands. He had already beaten them, thanks to the help of his friends and the power of his own light. There was no way this little piece of pie was going to stop him from reaching the top! with his last bit of strength...Sora swallowed.

The crowd exploded into cheers and applause as the announcer raised Sora's arm in victory. "We have a winner! For the first time, our champion, Augustus has been defeated! By not one one person, but two strapping young men who have proven themselves to be pie-eating masters!"

The man looked over at Riku who was taking his defeat a bit hard. "Riku, was your name correct? Well, Riku, do not feel discouraged that you lost, you both have acheived quite an impressive feat, make no mistake! Lets give it up for our winner and our second place champion!"

"Sora! Riku!" The crowd chanted among cheers and applause, Kairi, Donald and Goofy cheering the loudest.

Sora looked over at Riku after the crowd began to drift away. "Man...I sure don't feel like a winner."

Riku failed to hold back a loud belch as he nodded. The key bearer felt just as horrible as his friend. "Who's idea was this again?"

"Not one of my best." The silver-haired teen replied.

"Wanna call it a draw?" Sora asked, wondering if all of their eating contests would end up with sore stomachs.

"Nah, you won this round." Riku admitted, painfully.

"This round?"

"Yeah, because next time I'll double whatever you manage to scarf down." Riku replied with a smirk.

Sora returned his friend's expression. "You're on."

"Sora!"

Both boys looked up to see the rest of their group approach. Sora made to greet Kairi when his stomach released a loud belch. The boy quickly covered his mouth and turned away in embarrassment. Riku tried not to laugh, but it was hard.

"It's okay, I'd probably do the same if I had eaten that many pies in one sitting. How'd you pull that off?" Kairi asked.

"I have no idea." Sora replied.

The group made their way over to a fountain where Sora and Riku were able to rest. Goofy had ran to get them something to drink to help wash the pie down. He returned with some ice tea. Both boys accepted it gratefully and chugged away.

"Easy, you'll make yourselves sick if you drink that fast." Kairi warned.

Not far away on another stage Clopin, the leader of the parade from earlier and apparent head leader of the festival addressed the large crowd that had gathered.

"And now, ladies and gentleman, the _'piece de resistance'_!"

He began singing his announcement in the same tune as the parade's theme.

_"Here it is! The moment you've been waiting for._

_Here it is! You know exactly what's in store._

_Now's the time we laugh until our sides get sore._

_Now's the time we crown the King of Fools!"_

He looked around the audience. "You all remember last year's king?" He pointed over to a chair that was being carried by four other people. In the chair sat a man who seemed the very definition of a fool. He wore an orange jester's shirt with purple pants and a matching jester's hat with bells. He waved clumsily to the crowd with a goofy grin as he let out a loud belch. Putting it flatly, the man seemed drunk beyond all reason.

"So! Let's see who's can dethrone him! Who here has the most horrible and frightening face? Who's face is as gruesome as a gargoyle's wing? For you know the face's that ugliest belongs to the King of Fools!"

He began to help people crawl up on stage. They were all wearing costume, some of them were the same costumes Sora had seen earlier that Riku had pointed out to him. He had secretly wanted to enter, but his stomach was hurting too much now to try.

The group of five merely sat back to enjoy the show. The first man tried to cover his lower lip over his nose, which he somehow managed to pull off quite nicely. However it wasn't ugly enough. The woman in the red dress from before took a step back and nodded to her companion; a goat who bucked the man from behind and sent him flying into the crowd. It parted leaving him to fall face-first into the mud.

Next came a man who was trying to make his face uglier by pulling on his lips to expose his lower jaw. It was less impressive than the first and he too was bucked into the mud. Several others met the same fate as hardly anyone seemed to have what it takes to out-ugly the current king.

Finally there was only one man left on stage. Esmeralda went to pull off what she thought was his mask when it didn't come off. She gasped in shock and surprise as did some of the audience.

"That's no mask!" Cried one man.

"It's his face!" Shouted another as they soon began to realise who this man was.

"It's the bell ringer from Notre Dame!" A third man shouted.

This seemed to take everyone by surprise, even the man in the black robe from before seemed shocked by this turn of events.

Sora was having a hard time understanding what the big deal was. "Why are they getting so worked up over what the guy looks like?" He didn't focus on the features of the man's face, but instead saw the fear and embarrassment the man was feeling.

"Their just being ignorant." Riku answered. "They're too stupid and simple-minded to see someone for who they are, rather than what they look like."

"I think it's cruel." Kairi added.

Donald and Goofy nodded in agreement. "It's what's inside that counts." Goofy chimed in.

They continued to watch the events unfold.

It was Clopin who stepped in and stopped the crowd from going any further.

"Ladies and gentlemen, don't panic. We asked for the ugliest face and Paris, and here he is!"

This seemed to do the trick as the people stopped fretting and slowly began to smile. This was soon followed by applause and cheers.

Clopin pulled out a new crown that resembled a king's crown the spikes were floppy and small bells jingled at the end of each point.

"Quasimodo, the hunchback of Notre Dame!" He proclaimed as he placed the crown atop of Quasimodo's head.

More music broke out as the hunchback was lifted from the stage and carried high by several people as a path was made for Clopin who led the group. More confetti rained down over the new king as the old king was knocked off his throne with a comical _'sproing'_ sound and the people placed Quasimodo in the throne that was now his.

Quasimodo was led to a new stage that seemed a bit strange. It was a small stage and at its center was a large wheel that resembled a turn-table. As Quasimodo was led on stage Clopin draped a king's cape across the hunchback's shoulders. As the people continued to cheer the new king could barely hold back tears of joy. This was obviously beyond what he had expected.

Donald folded his arms while Goofy nodded in approval. "Well, it seems everything turned out alright for 'im."

"Yeah, I guess so." Sora replied, feeling a little better than his did before. The tea seemed to be doing the trick as Riku also seemed to be feeling better.

"So, what do you want to do now?" Kairi asked the group as she looked around the area.

"Hey, don't forget why we're here!" Donald reminded her. "We've got a keyhole to lock."

"And a clue to find." Goofy added.

"Right!" Replied Donald.

"Well, we did have a lot of fun. Guss it's time to get back to our mission." Sora admitted as he slowly stood up.

"Aren't you coming, Riku?" Kairi asked, but the older teen was focusing on the crowd gathered around the stage. "Something strange is going on over there."

The group followed his gaze. At first people were throwing flowers at the new king. It soon escalated into throwing coins and other cheerful trinkets, but then something else was thrown and it hit him right in the face. It was a tomato. This was followed by a gasp from the crowd.

One of the soldiers who was among the crowd pointed and laughed. "Now _that's_ ugly!"

Another soldier threw another tomato his way. "Hail to the king!" Once again striking the hunchback in the face. More gasps followed, but not as many as before. Some of the crowd began to laugh.

As Quasimodo tried to get off the stage one of the people in the crowd pulled out a rope and lasso'd it above his head. "Where you goin' hunchback? The fun's just beginning!" He threw it and it roped around the man's neck, pulling him down and causing him to fall onto the stage. The crowd burst into fits of laughter.

Several people climbed onto the stage and used the rope to tie the hunchback down onto the turn table and made it spin. During this time more people began throwing eggs, tomatoes, lettuce and other foods at him.

"Master!" Quasimodo called to the man in the black robe. "Master...please! Help me!" But the man turned his head. He had no intentions of stepping in.

Sora on the other hand was enraged by this act of cruelty. Without saying a word to his friend he rushed into the crowd. Riku and the others followed right behind him.

Before Sora's group could get to the stage the crowd gasped as the woman from before; Esmeralda, now dressed in her normal attire stepped onto the stage. The crowd was forced into a hushed silence as she kenlt down by the man who cringed at her approach.

"I'm sorry." She said. "This wasn't suppose to happen."

"You there! Gypsy girl! Get down at once!" Demanded the man whom Quasimodo had begged for help from earlier.

"Yes, your honor. Just as soon as I free this poor creature." She replied.

"I forbid it!" He replied.

No sooner had he finished did she pull out a small knife and cut the ropes tying the man to the stage, freeing him.

"How dare you defy me!" The man growled.

"You mistreat this poor boy the same way to mistreat my people. You speak of justice, yet you are cruel to those most in need of your help!" She declared.

"Silence!" He shouted.

"Justice!" She replied.

She then turned to help the man up, ignoring what the Judge or anyone else had to say.

"Mark my words, Gypsy. You will pay for your insolence." The judge threatened.

Esmeralda turned to return the man's glare. "Then perhaps we've crowned the wrong fool..." She took the crown from Quasimodo. "The only fool I see is you!" She threw the crown which landed at the judge's feet with a small squeak.

"Guards, arrest her!" The judge ordered.

As the soldiers made their way to the stage the girl winked once again at the hunchback before jumping off the stage and running through the crowd. However, the soldiers soon had her surrounded.

"No where to run now." One of them said as he made to grab her. That's when Sora and his friend came to the rescue. The group shoved and tripped some of the guards as they pushed past to get to Esmeralda.

"This way!" Sora shouted as he pushed past the crowd with Esmeralda close behind, being led by Riku with Kairi, Donald and Goofy covering her from either side and from behind.

As they came to a more open area they found themselves surrounded. "Alright, you're all under arrest!" The guard proclaimed.

"I don't think so." Sora replied as the keyblade appeared in his hands.

"Witchcraft!" The judge gasped with a look of pure horror on his face.

Donald used his staff to shoot small bolts of lightning to clear a path as they made their escape.

"Captain!" The judge summoned his lead soldier. "I want them found!"

"Yes sir." He replied as he organized search teams to scout the area.

The judge then turned to Quasimodo who hadn't moved from the stage. Without a single word, the look on his master's face was enough to make the man cower and run back into the cathedral. As the door closed behind him rain began to pour down as if the sky was trying to wash away the events that had taken place.

Meanwhile, Sora and the others were trying to sneak out of the area, but found that every exit was blocked by soldiers.

"This way." Esmeralda whispered to them as she slipped into a side door of Notre Dame.

Kairi followed close behind her while the other made sure they weren't spotted.

"We should be safe here." explained the Gypsy as she took a deep, relaxing breath to calm her nerves.

"Don't worry. We won't let them arrest you." Riku told her.

"Yeah, you didn't do anything to deserve it." Sora added.

"You don't have to do anything to get arrested in this town." Esmeralda replied. "If you're a Gypsy, that's more than enough reason for Judge Frollo."

"Who?" Donald asked.

"That man who refused who help that poor boy." She replied. "He's suppose to be the one who upholds justice in the city and help those in need, but he's done nothing but make life miserable for the people of this city. My people have suffered the worst of it."

"That's awful!" Goofy exclaimed.

"That's messed up!" Sora agreed.

"There they are!"

The group turned to see not only a group of soldiers, but Judge Frollo himself standing behind them.

"Take them!" He ordered.

"Hold it!" Sora shouted, waving his hand to point out where they were. "We claim sanctuary!"

"Excuse me?" Frollo asked.

"You can't arrest us here!" Kairi retorted.

"Very well then, men, drag them outside and arrest them!" The judge ordered.

"Frollo! You will not touch them!" Came the voice of the head monk. "Don't worry, my children, Frollo learned long ago to respect the sanctity of Notre Dame."

With a look of anger, Frollo turned to leave with his soldiers following close behind. He stopped at the door and addressed the group. "You have chosen a magnificent prison, but it is a prison nonetheless. Set one foot outside, and you're mine!" With that he slammed the door.

"Aw, now what do we do?" Asked Donald.

"We'll think of something." Sora replied. "At least we're safe."

"For now." Riku replied.

"What's with this crazy town?" Kairi asked. "What to they have against people who are different?"

"I've asked the same question many times." Esmeralda replied.

"I sure hope that other guy is okay." Goofy stated.

"Well, we saw him run in here, why don't we see if we can find him?" Sora asked.

"There's not much else we can do at this point." Donald replied.

The halls around then suddenly seemed to echo with the sound of bells. The group noticed that the melody seemed sad.

* * *

**_Well, this is a nice jam our heroes have gotten themselves stuck in. How will they escape and how will they achieve their mission now? more will be revealed soon. ;)_**


End file.
